Oldham hit by record-breaking downpours and thunderstorms

Oldham skies were lit up by the thunder strikes yesterday. Picture courtesy of Chris Stringer on Twitter

Some of the scenes above Oldham yesterday were described as 'biblical' and 'apocalyptic' as record-breaking thunderstorms hit the town.

More potential thunderstorms are forecast for later today (Wednesday).

According to @ChadWeather on Twitter, a weather warning is in place for thunderstorms, with a risk of localised flooding, between 12 noon and 9pm.

Frequent lightning and more torrential downpours are forecast, along with gusty winds, hailstones and perhaps the odd funnel cloud.

Other weather experts are warning there is a chance some homes and businesses could be flooded, with damage caused by floodwater, lightning strikes or strong winds.

A new rainfall record was broken yesterday afternoon when 23.2mm fell inside one hour (records began in August, 2012).

Flash flooding also caused traffic chaos on the M60, M62 and M602.

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